Poll: 59% want Filner out

San Diegans overwhelmingly want Mayor Bob Filner to resign as the sexual harassment scandal deepens around him, according to a U-T San Diego/10News Poll released late Friday.

The survey shows city residents favor resignation by a 2-to-1 margin, 59 percent to 30 percent. Among those who favor resignation, 74 percent say he should be recalled if he doesn’t step down.

That belief appears to transcend gender, party affiliation, education level and socioeconomic status.

A majority of Democrats, Republicans and independent voters said they believe the Democratic mayor should leave office on his own volition. A majority of self-identified liberals, conservatives and moderates say the mayor should step down as do people from across education and income levels, according to the poll.

“The mayor has no constituency,” said Jay Leve, president of SurveyUSA, which conducted the poll Friday. “Men and women, young and old, white and Hispanic, Democrat and Republican, all say the mayor needs to go. With no group rallying to the mayor’s defense, it’s unclear how long he survives with just an apology.”

Just seven months into his first term, Filner has come under mounting pressure to relinquish his post since a trio of progressive allies this week urged him to resign over unspecified allegations of sexual harassment. On Friday, several prominent Democrats ratcheted up the heat with calls of their own for him to quit.

The controversy has ricochet across the city, which over years has become familiar with turmoil at City Hall but in more recent times grown accustomed to Filner’s mild-mannered predecessor.

Eight in 10 people reported hearing of the sexual harassment allegations leveled against Filner, according to the poll. Thirty-two percent believe Filner has said enough to answer to the charges, but 57 percent say he must say more. The notion that the mayor must address the allegations in more detail was higher among Democrats.

Carl Luna, a political science professor at Mesa College, said there’s a possibility the mayor believes he could survive the firestorm. But Luna says the numbers don’t agree with that.

“He’s in the bunker and the bunker door is shut, so he’s going to have to be smoked out by his opponents and supporters.”

The automated poll of 700 people has a margin of error of 3.7 percent and 4.3 percent among subgroups. Those not reachable on landlines were shown a questionnaire on their smartphone, tablet or other device.

Also clear from the survey is the credibility residents give the allegations, which were first raised by former Democratic councilwoman Donna Frye and attorneys Marco Gonzalez and Cory Briggs. Some 60 percent said they believed the sexual harassment charges were true while 8 percent said they believed they were untrue.

Since taking office in December, 53 percent said their opinion of the mayor has changed for the worse, while 14 percent said their views have changed for the better. Thirty percent report no change and 3 percent were unsure, according to the poll.

Democrats were twice as likely as Republicans and independents to say the city has improved under Filner. The more liberal the respondent the more likely they were to say that the mayor has changed the city for the better. Overall, however, only 21 percent of respondents believe the city is in better shape under Filner, 38 percent say things are worse, 35 percent report the same and 5 percent are unsure.

Just 32 percent approve of the job Filner is doing, according to the poll. His disapproval rate grew to 56 percent from 43 percent in June.

That U-T San Diego/10News Poll found 39 percent approved of his performance with 18 percent unsure. The numbers from last month had reflected a slight improvement from February, before plummeting to their lowest point in this latest survey.

In addition to the harassment allegations, Filner has refused to answer specifics about an overseas trip to attend a protest. He’s engaged in a heated spat with the City Attorney’s Office over its role in city business. The mayor also has been dogged by persistent questions over a $100,000 gift to the city from a developer whose project the mayor initially opposed.

Of those familiar with the dustup over the donation, just 21 percent said they approved of the way the mayor handled the issue, 71 percent disapproved and 8 percent were unsure.

The developer, Sunroad Centrum Partners, donated the money, which was targeted to two of the mayor’s pet projects — a veterans plaza and a daylong bicycling event. The mayor, who eventually returned the donation, initially said he wasn’t aware of the contribution because it was made at the staff level.

A former staffer involved with the transaction said the mayor knew all along.

Sixteen percent of those surveyed believe the mayor is telling the truth about the donation and 72 percent don’t believe him.